First report of a gall midge as a parasitoid of weaver ants
2020
Mekonnen, Bethelihem | Haran, Julien | Copeland, Robert, S. | Pirk, Christian, W. W. | Yusuf, Abdullahi, A. | Deletre, Emilie | International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) | University of Pretoria [South Africa] | Department of Zoology and Entomology [Pretoria] ; University of Pretoria [South Africa] | Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations (UMR CBGP) ; Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [Occitanie])-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE)-Institut Agro - Montpellier SupAgro ; Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro) | Département Systèmes Biologiques (Cirad-BIOS) ; Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad) | Smithsonian Institution | National Museum of Natural History ; National Museum of Natural History | Fonctionnement agroécologique et performances des systèmes de cultures horticoles (UPR HORTSYS) ; Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad) | Département Performances des systèmes de production et de transformation tropicaux (Cirad-PERSYST) ; Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad) | We are thankful to the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for funding the PhD fellowship, the University of Pretoria, and icipe Capacity Building Program (ARPPIS) for hosting the (B.M) PhD student. We thank MS Michel Martinez (France) and Raymond J.Gagne (USA) for interesting exchanges on the biology of the Cecidomyiidae family. The authors are grateful to Sevgan Subramanian, a senior entomologist and insect pathologist at icipe (Plant Health Theme) for the beautiful photos. This work was supported through CIRAD; and icipe core funding provided by UK Aid from the UK Government, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, and the Kenyan Government.
International audience
Afficher plus [+] Moins [-]anglais. Gall midges (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) comprise a diverse family of small nematoceran flies. While most species are phytophagous, the family also includes predatory species, and endoparasitoids. Endoparasitic species have been reared from aphids and psyllids. We discovered parasitoid-infected weaver ant, Oecophylla longinoda (Latreille) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in nests on mango trees in coastal Kenya. Examination of 5 colonies revealed the presence of parasitoids in all of them, with parasitism rates ranging from 2 to 21%. Morphological examination of larval parasitoids indicated that they were gall midges, and molecular data were consistent with the identification. Attempts to rear adults were unsuccessful. This study presents to the best of our knowledge the first report of Cecidomyiidae parasitising Hymenoptera, as well as the first report of a parasitoid of weaver ants. This species should be investigated further because its damage may limit the ability of weaver ants to control pests of cultivated fruits and other insects.
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